


Renewals

by KidoLegend98 (AerinStrifeVII)



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: 10-year darkness, Chapter 10 spoilers, F/M, Minor Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum, Post-Altissia, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, References to Depression, multi-chapter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-19
Updated: 2017-07-27
Packaged: 2018-11-16 02:40:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 18,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11244642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AerinStrifeVII/pseuds/KidoLegend98
Summary: After the failed treaty signing in Insomnia and the tragedies in Altissia, the war between Lucis and Niflheim has come to an uneasy standstill. Darkness has taken over the realm, both the Oracle and the Lucian Prince have been claimed dead by the Empire, and hopes are fading for people all over the continent.Aylin Noctua is just another citizen-turned-hunter who is trying her best to protect people from the flood of daemons, all while quietly loathing the Niflheim Empire for dragging Eos into such a sorry state. However, after an unexpected encounter involving a certain blonde gunner and a ransacked military base, Aylin’s world gets turned on its head. Working together with her new companion and his dear friends, Aylin finds herself wrapped up in a battle for the return of the light and salvation of the world.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Heyaz~ So I'm Kidolegend98... I'm a fairly new writer who hasn't done too many works, and this is my first major fic in a large fandom! I'm excited, but I'm also really nervous that my work won't be well-received... If you really like this work and would like to see it continue, PLEASE take a quick sec and comment to let me know what you think! I'll be updating both here and on tumblr (under kidolegend), so feel free to check it out!~
> 
> Other than that... Welcome to the ride and hope you enjoy!

“Man, I could eat a horse…”

“Well, as long as y’all pay for it, go right ahead.”

“Aw, c’mon Takka, no discount?”

The head of the Hammerhead diner gave the pair of hunters in front of him a deadpan look. “Just cuz yer huntin’ a couple varmints doesn’t mean you can eat me outta house and home.”

“Ahaha, yeah, we’re just joking with you, man.” The two laughed and began perusing the menu, chattering away.

“Excuse me.” A clear voice spoke up behind them, belonging to young woman with short, dark hair and green eyes. She had just arrived at the diner and regarded the men hesitantly, adjusting the newsboy cap on her head.

“Ah, there you are. What’ll it be today?” Takka greeted her.

She shuffled forward and the strange blades at her left hip reflected the yellow diner light as she came to a halt across the counter, catching the attention of the hunters beside her. “I wanted to pick up another hunting job, if you’ve still got any.”

“Of course I do! We won’t be runnin’ out anytime soon, what with all the daemons prowlin’ around as they damn well please.”

“And hey, if you need some fighting partners we’ve got some space on our team.” One of the hunters leaned back and gave her a once over, nudging his friend.

“Yeah,” The other grinned, his tone friendly. “We’ll make sure you don’t get hurt. Some of those daemons are real nasty and we wouldn’t want a less experienced hunter out on her own.”

Takka chuckled and shook his head, pulling out a worn notebook. He flipped it open and sorted through a stack of requests piled inside it. He glanced up and saw that the woman looked mildly unimpressed with the two young men across from him.

Her tone, however, was cordial. “Uh, I think I’ll be able to handle things on my own. I wouldn’t want to interrupt your meal.” She turned back towards the cook as he held out the requests, obviously uncomfortable with any more small talk.

“There’s all the rank seven hunts we got,” Takka humored her, keeping the conversation strictly on topic so she could escape the unwanted social interaction as soon as possible. “Lemme know which one you pick.” 

The first hunter--who had been taking a sip of his water--choked. “R-rank seven? You’re a Guardian?!”

“Err, yeah.” The young woman suppressed a grin at the disbelief on the two hunter’s faces as she pulled her hat down a little further. Takka could tell she was still anxious, but now more smugly so. “Aaanyways… This one looks good, Takka.”

He took the slip and frowned. “Aah, actually you can’t have that one. S’already been taken, but the three boys huntin’ it have put it on hold. Must’ve slipped my mind to mark it down... Sorry ‘bout that.”

“Oh, it’s fine.” She shrugged, practically diving back into the stack before the other two eavesdropping could interrupt. “There are plenty to choose from, after all.”

The second of the male hunters had suddenly frowned, turning to Takka. “Three rank seven guys… You don’t mean those Crown City lookin’ bunch, do you?”

The first hunter was still gawking at the woman, but he also piped up at the comment. “Oh, didn’t they used to be a larger group? Like I heard that ‘Cor the Immortal’ from the Lucian Crownsguard was with them sometimes…”

“One of them was even rumored to be Prince Noctis himself. No one really knows if it was actually him, but… Were those the guys on that hunt?”

“Yep, that’s them alright. Put all their hunts on hold after talkin’ ‘bout some Niff bases croppin’ up.” Takka shook his head. “Crazy bunch, but if anyone’ll take those nasties down, it’ll be them.”

“Damn…”

“Who would’ve thought there are people still fighting against the Empire, even now?”

“Takka,” The young woman interjected, surprising the cook. She lowered the stack of hunting requests. “You mentioned something about Niflheim bases, right?”

“Sure did. In fact there’s one goin’ up near Ostium Gorge. Saw an airship flyin’ in this mornin’.” He replied. 

The young woman nodded slowly, looking thoughtful. After a moment, she clasped her hands together decisively, her green eyes shining. “Okay.”

“O...kay?” The three men regarded her with confusion, but she was already moving.

“Takka, I’ll need you to put my hunts on hold for now, too.” She straightened out the hunt requests before handing them back. “Can you call HQ and let them know?”

“Wh… Uhh, alright…” Takka still looked bewildered, but he marked her name down nonetheless. “So, yer really gonna join  _ that  _ fight?”

“Sure, I have some experience with Niff tech.” All the shyness the woman’s demeanor had vanished in her excitement. “If I can do anything to strike back against the Empire, I should do it before they set anything too big up.” She turned on her heel. “Say ‘hi’ to Cindy for me, okay?”

“H-hey, wait!” The two hunters--who had been rendered completely speechless by the exchange--called her back before she could take off into the darkness. “Guardian lady… Who are you?”

“Oh, I guess I forgot…” She spun back around, but continued retreating backwards out of the diner as she yanked off her hat--revealing a short haircut that was now sticking out messily at the sides and top from being shoved under a cap all day--and stuffed it in her knapsack. “Name’s Aylin. Aylin Noctua.”


	2. A Long Way in a Dark World

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PTSD trigger-warning... Poor Prompto...

_“I’ll take that base out on my own.”_

It had been a few days since Prompto had made his proclamation to his companions. With Noctis missing and the world plunged into darkness, the three had returned to the continent defeated but resolute. It seemed that Ardyn was taking no liberties while establishing his rule, setting countless daemons loose and chasing any countrymen back into havens or towns to cower in fear.

Gladio, Ignis, and Prompto had set off immediately to Meldacio Headquarters, where requests for aid vastly outnumbered the hunters available. The three men hunted as a unit--helping Ignis regain his bearings and fighting prowess after his injuries in Altissia--but without Noctis to lead them, everything felt incomplete.

“So guys… When do you think Noct…” Prompto was lying on a motel bed beside Ignis, staring absentmindedly at the ceiling. He trailed off, already knowing the other two men would understand.

“You’ve asked thirty times, cut it out already.” Gladio shut his book, a little irritated. Previously, he had commented about how nice it was to have a bed to himself, but the joke left a bitter taste in his mouth. “None of us know where he went or when he’ll be back.”

Ignis’ voice was lower than normal as he murmured back a reply. “All we can really do is believe. The rest… Well, it’s up to Noct.”  

After a few weeks of hunts and still no sign from the wayward prince, word came in that Niflheim had begun rebuilding blockades and military bases around the continent. None of the hunters in Meldacio were too happy about the news--as it made their jobs much more complicated--but were powerless to stop it.

However, that wasn’t about to hold back the Prince’s entourage.

“We’ll take out the largest garrison--Fort Vaullerey--first, that’ll make it more difficult for supplies to be transported to the other locations.” Ignis was pacing back and forth between Gladio and Prompto, his walking cane tracing a lazy path in front of him.

Prompto nodded absentmindedly as Ignis continued strategizing. The low skimming of the thin pole against the worn tile was barely audible, but for Prompto the sound rattled in his ears. It sounded familiar, like the dragging of metal coupled with staggered footsteps… The rhythmic buzzing of machinery, the red, hollow eyes, the shivers that were both from the frigid chill and his paralyzing fear, the echoing screams that sounded horribly like his own--

“Prompto.”

“W-wha?” He jerked at the sound of Ignis’ voice. “S-sorry, I guess I’m a little tired.”

Across the room, Gladio’s eyes narrowed slightly and Ignis pressed his lips into a fine line. However, neither of them pursued the issue of Prompto’s lapse in attention. “You mentioned seeing one of the military aircrafts yesterday, did you not?”

“Yeah, it was one of those really massive ones, headed for Fort Vaullerey. Just like the last time, when we first met Aranea.” Prompto gritted his teeth, frustrated with himself. His attention span had never been the best, but after his time in Gralea his focus was all over the place.

“Then they are indeed setting up a supply line. We must stop them, or they will be able to fuel their military exploits right under our noses.”

“And like hell we’re gonna let that happen.” Gladio grumbled. “Doesn’t matter that they’ve technically won the battle, I’m gonna make sure they fight for every damn bullet.”

“Indeed.”

Prompto nodded. “For sure.” His confidence was shaken, but he wasn’t about to let himself get beaten down.

Not this time.

Ignis had moved on, his pacing slowing to a halt. “After that has been dealt with, I believe tackling the base near Hammerhead will be our next priority. It will be more difficult, as the Empire will fortify their defenses once we destroy the first base, but we need the road to Insomnia clear for when Noct returns.”

That was when the idea struck, and Prompto spoke up suddenly.

“I’ll take that base out on my own.”

“The hell are you talking about?” Gladio and Ignis looked incredulous, but Prompto wasn’t deterred.

“Listen, if you two go to Fort Vaullerey and attack there, I can sneak into the other base no problem. Like Iggy said, we need that road to get back home.”

“...You want to use our attack as a diversion?” Ignis elaborated.

The gunner nodded. “Yeah, that’s the plan.”

“Any reinforcements in that area will likely be directed towards us once we launch our attack the Fort… I expect the chancellor will be anticipating a counterstrike from the three of us.” Ignis looked thoughtful.

“Except he won’t be expecting an attack on two fronts. After all, it’s stupid to try and tackle an entire military base solo.” Gladio folded his arms. However, before Prompto could protest, he added, “But that might be the opening we need.”

Ignis frowned. “It’s an extraordinarily reckless plan, Prompto.”

“I know, but I’ve gotta do this.”

“Oh?” He received questioning looks from Gladio and Ignis.

Prompto looked down at his lap. “I’m tired of hiding behind everyone and being the weak link. Even when I got captured, all I could do was sit and wait for you guys to come rescue me, like some damsel in distress…” His hands clenched into fists. “I’ve got to get stronger or I’ll never be able to help anyone… Not even myself, and definitely not Noct.”

The silence that followed the blonde’s words was heavy, but after a few moments, Ignis gave a resigned sigh.

“If that is what you believe… Very well. Do be careful, though.”

“Of course. I’ve gotta make it through so I can help Noct beat the shit outta Ardyn, right? I won’t go dying before that.”

Small smiles appeared on both Ignis’ and Gladio’s faces, and Prompto’s shoulders slumped in relief as they continued hashing out tactics. It wasn’t until everything was set that Gladio reached over and cuffed the gunner’s arm, a proud grin on his face.

“You’ve come a long way, Prompto.”

“Ahah,” Prompto returned the smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes. He could feel his chest tightening as the ghosts of metal and blood clouded his mind, the cold laughter and chilling prison of his old 'home' seared torturously into his memory. He took a deep breath and chased the traumatic flashbacks away, forcing himself back into reality.

“Yeah... I guess I have.”


	3. The Start of a Plan

Prompto, Ignis, and Gladio split up the next morning--or what would have been morning, had the sun still been visible--to take on their objectives. It was a lonely chocobo ride back towards Insomnia, but Prompto was resolved to tackle the garrison on his own. He passed a few hordes of daemons, but thankfully wasn’t chased far--even the fastest daemons were no match for a chocobo.

“It’s only been a few weeks and everything’s already so bad…” Prompto mumbled, half to himself and half to his pale blue steed who--while not quite understanding--crooned softly in response.

He jumped as his cell phone vibrated, but switched the chocobo reins to one hand and continued racing across the dirt roads as he answered. “Yyee-hello?”

“Prompto.”

“Heya, Iggy!” Prompto’s cheery greeting seemed too loud in the dark desert area, so he lowered his voice. “What’s up?”

“We’ve just reached Old Lestallum. Gladio’s getting us something to eat and we will then be heading on to the garrison to conduct surveillance of the area.”

“Gotcha. I just passed Longwythe, so I’ll probably be in Hammerhead before noon.” 

There was a brief pause. “Prompto, are you sure about this? You can still turn back or wait for us in Hammerhead…”

Prompto shook his head, even though he knew it was a pointless gesture over the phone. “I can handle this. A couple magitek armors and maybe an airship… No big deal. I’ve already got a vague idea of what I’m gonna do, so don’t worry about me.”

“...If you say so.” Ignis replied after another silence. Prompto heard a deeper voice in the background. “Ah, Gladio is back with the food… Hmm, cup noodles, how predictable.”

The gunner laughed, giving the reins in his hand a slight tug to keep his chocobo on the main road. “Well, it’s better than nothing.”

“I suppose you’re right.” Ignis sighed. “I’ll be going, then.”

“Right, and uh, hey, Ignis?”

“Yes?”

“I won’t let you guys down!”

He couldn’t have been sure, but he could almost hear the smile behind Ignis’ voice. “I know you won’t. Take care.”

 

“All right, buddy… I’ve left enough food for a few days here for you, but don’t go eating it all at once!” It hadn’t taken long for Prompto to set up and rest at Brackham Haven, the campsite east of the garrison. He was tethering his chocobo, making sure the poor bird couldn’t easily wander into daemon territory, but keeping the ties loose enough to pull free from in case he didn’t return. “I should be back within a day or so, but if not…”

He was patting the pastel bird absentmindedly and it nudged his face, trilling affectionately into his ear. Prompto laughed, ducking away. “All right, all right! I promise I’ll be back. Just… keep watch over my stuff, okay? I’m not gonna need all of it at the base.”

The chocobo cocked its pale blue head at him blinked. The gunner nodded, deciding the bird’s gesture was close enough to an affirmation. “Well, I guess I’ll be off…” He murmured, turning towards the the nearby garrison and hitching his daypack and water canteen higher on his shoulder.

It wasn’t a particularly large base, but the high walls and imposing structure still sent a chill up Prompto’s spine. He took a deep breath, steeling himself as he jumped off the haven’s runestone and headed for the watch tower just outside the base. “Here we go…”

Reaching the tower had been simple enough--Prompto had gotten there before any infantrymen could be assigned to the outside guard and had managed to avoid the daemons’ attention by keeping the light clipped to his lapel under strict control. He was nervous, but extremely glad to avoid any early conflict that could interfere with his surveillance.

“First off…” Prompto took out a thin spool of electrical wire and began looping it around the entrance to the stairs. It wouldn’t do him any good to get ambushed at the top of the watchtower--while he would survive the jump, he knew he wouldn’t be able to avoid injuring his legs and probably wouldn’t be able to run far if he did. He secured the wire so it criss-crossed along the railing, making sure it was pulled taut before knotting it and cutting the end with his pocket knife.

“I’d like to see an MT get around that,” He stepped back to admire his handiwork, imagining one of the troopers unwittingly tangle itself in the wire and short itself out. Prompto was confident that if--by some chance--an MT managed to sneak past his watch and attempt to ascend the watchtower, he would have plenty of warning. “All rightie, phase one, complete!”

He hopped over his trap and headed up the stairs, keeping a low profile and watching the entrance to the base warily. It wasn’t until he got to the top that he spotted the activity within the garrison--infantrymen circling the perimeter of a large, makeshift warehouse in the center of the facility. There were freight containers, giant spools of industrial cables, small shacks containing various control panels, and a couple of watchtowers identical to his own that dotted the fortress--all ideal hiding spots and vantage points--and inside the main warehouse he could just make out several large magitek armors and a couple of heavy-duty turrets.

“Perfect,” He grinned at his own luck, pulling a worn notebook out of his pack and getting to work.

 

It didn’t take long for Prompto to map out the visible MT’s patrol routes. He was only half-thankful that the Niflheim empire used technology over real soldiers--mechanized sets of armor were easy to control and even easier to predict.

‘Would I have been this empty if I had ended up like…’ Prompto gave his head a small shake to dispel the unpleasant--and admittedly, reoccurring--thought. “Just keep it together, Prompto…” He told himself, focusing again on marking his rough blueprint.

He glanced at his phone periodically, making sure he hadn’t missed any messages from Ignis or Gladio. He hoped that they were doing all right with their strategizing--without Ignis’ vision how could they possibly come up with a solid plan?

He sighed, trying to worry about his own strategy instead of his companions. They had both trained in combat their entire lives and they would do doubt watch each other’s back.

He was on his own.

Prompto shook his head again, a little more vigorously. No, he wasn’t going to chicken out now. Sure, it was reckless and stupid, but he had something he wanted to prove to himself. “I can do this. I  _ will _ do this.” He reassured his pounding heart. “I’ve got everything set up, now all I have to do is…”

“...Take down a military stronghold.”

He exhaled loudly, plopping down and leaning against one of the old supply crates, shifting so he wasn’t immediately visible from the stairwell. He checked his phone again--he wouldn’t be getting the go-ahead from Ignis or Gladio for several more hours. He had told himself previously that he would get some sleep before launching his assault, but when he closed his eyes all he could feel was crushing self-doubt.

Looks like napping wouldn’t really be an option until he got his mind off things. “Hm. Might as well play King’s Knight in the meantime. Bet my Zell tree’s almost full...”

 

Prompto wasn’t sure when he managed to fall asleep, but he snapped awake at the sound of soft footsteps. His heart leapt into his throat but he kept perfectly still and silent, his presence concealed by the crates. He knew it couldn’t have been an MT--none of them moved quietly and--given his past traumas--he could hear them approaching even in the deepest of slumbers.

So… who?

He swallowed and inched forward, craning his neck slightly so he could peek around the side of the worn containers. The figure was crouched, facing away from him and peering down at the military fortress. Prompto straightened up as best he could, still in a sleepy daze but ready to run or fight if it came to it. The kneeling figure shifted backwards on its knees towards him, keeping its eyes on the garrison. Before the drowsy blonde could figure out what to do, the figure flipped back its hood, shaking out its short, dark hair.

Prompto’s throat went dry and he made an oddly strangled noise as he suppressed the urge to shout and alert everything in a hundred-yard radius of his presence.

“Wait, N-Noct?!”


	4. Not Noct... Or Noct Noct?

Aylin Noctua had experienced surprise many times in her life. Like most people with siblings, she was accustomed to dumb pranks and ridiculous shenanigans. She was also familiar with the decidedly less pleasant shockers, such as daemons interrupting hunts or a group of MTs that decided she was a threat to be disposed of.

Yes, Aylin Noctua could safely say she was accustomed to the unexpected.

But when she had climbed into the military watchtower, intending to check out the arsenal of weapons the Niffs were working with, she wasn’t expecting company.

Especially not company that had drifted to sleep behind some old storage crates.

“Shit--!!” Aylin’s dual blades were out and at the ready in a heartbeat and the only thing that prevented her from chucking one into the body of whoever the _hell_ was hiding up here was the name that came from his mouth.

“N-Noct?!”

She froze. Aylin blinked, dumbfounded at the blond in front of her. ‘Is that like, a nickname for me?’

“Aw man, not again…” The man had his hands up in what appeared to be surrender, his eyes screwed shut with what looked like fear. “Dude, I was able to survive the train but with all the daemons out here and the military…”

‘What in the hell was this guy talking about?’

He was still rambling, barely coherent as he cringed away from her. “Please don't do this to me, okay? Buddy, c'mon...”

“Uhh… Sorry?” Aylin kept her weapons in a defensive position--maybe this guy was just pretending to be a lunatic to throw her off-guard.

“H-huh?” The young man’s eyes flew open at the sound of her voice. His eyes skimmed over her--lingering on her hair, which was sticking up in a very Noctis-esque kind of way--and his anxiety quickly melted into bewilderment. “Y-you’re not Noct.”

“I… I’m Noctua,” Aylin emphasized the last half of her family name, still tense. “Do I know you?”

“Oh.” The young man relaxed, heaving a sigh. He scratched the back of his head, an oddly endearing gesture for someone in such a suspicious place. “No, I guess not. Sorry, I confused you with N... Uh, with someone else.” He finished lamely.

Aylin still hadn’t moved, her confusion only growing as this young man brushed off his near-meltdown and gave her a concerned look.

“But, hey. A hunter like you shouldn’t be out here with the Empire so close. It’s gonna get real dangerous so I would head back over to Hammerhead or something.” His urges seemed earnest enough, and his eyes held only worry.

“You’re… You’re not a Niff?” Aylin asked, still in disbelief. It wasn’t surprising that he had recognized her hunter’s outfit--all of the women in Meldacio wore similar uniforms, save some accessories--but did he have to look so flippant in the face of her dual blades? She redoubled her grip on the weapons. “You’re not going to stop me?”

“Me?” The blond looked a little bothered by the question and his reply had a shocking amount of conviction, almost as if he were willing it to be true. “No, I’m _not_ one of them. I'm a Lucian, through and through.”

“Then what are you doing here?” She pressed.

“Oh, right.” He was scratching the back of his head again. “I’m Prompto. I'm here to bust-a... Ah, _destroy_ this base.”

His answer was so straightforward that Aylin blanched in the face of his blunt honesty. However, as she remembered her conversation at the diner, she began piecing everything together.

“So you’re one of the three guys… You’re with the Crownsguard?”

“Uh huh,” Prompto gave a nod. “Well, actually, not _formally_ part of it, but close enough.”

Aylin still held her reservations, but she lowered her weapons. “You…” She gave him a skeptical once-over. “You really don’t look like part of the Crownsguard.”

Prompto chuckled. “Ahah, I guess I don’t… Gladio and Ignis look the part waay more than I do. Like I said, I’m only an honorary Crownsguard, so…”

The names Prompto rattled off set off a familiar spark in her mind. “Gladiolus Amicitia and Ignis Stupeo Scientia.” She recited, half to herself. “So you’re… Prompto Argentum?”

“Yeah, that’s right. How’d you know?”

“...Huh.” Aylin remarked. So he really _was_ a good guy? The relief that flooded through her brought a small smile to her face. “That Marshall... Cor Leonis mentioned your names at Meldacio.”

“Aah,” Prompto rolled his shoulders, stretching and shaking off the nap he had taken. It appeared that the two had moved past their initial distrust of each other, so Prompto's demeanor lightened significantly. After all, someone trusted by Cor had to be good, right? “So, you said your name was Noct… Nocta?”

“Noctua,” The hunter corrected. “My first name is Aylin.”

“Right, sorry about that. But uh, like I said… Things are gonna ugly at the base, it’s not safe for you.”

She raised her eyebrows, glancing around. “You and the other two from the Crownsguard are going to launch an attack here?”

“Nope, just me. The other two are at Fort Vaullerey.”

Aylin paused, her expression doubtful again. “Just… you?”

Prompto grinned in reply.

Aylin’s green eyes narrowed slightly. “Then, uh…” She shuffled her feet. “This is a little weird, but do you want some help?”

Prompto’s eyes widened. “Wait, seriously? Aren’t you a hunter or something?”

“Yeah, but I know some tech stuff and I was planning on taking on the garrison myself anyways so…” She lingered on the last syllable. “Why not team up since we have the same goal?”

The gunner felt his heart lift, but he kept his voice even, careful not to betray too much excitement. “Are… Are you sure about this? It’s gonna be real dangerous.”

The determination in Aylin’s eyes reminded him of the look in Noct’s eyes whenever he was set on an idea. There was no talking her out of it. “I’m sure. I want to fight back against Niflheim in any way I can.”

“Well, I guess I can’t say no to that.” Prompto gave a mock sigh of defeat. He was worried about the young woman’s safety, but there was no denying the relief he felt at having someone watching his back. “Okay, then. Welcome to Team Prompto!”

Aylin let out a soft laugh and the gunner found himself smiling. “Thanks, glad to lend a hand.” She settled down next to him as he pulled out his blueprint.

“All right, so what do we have to work with…?”


	5. Operation's A-Go!

Prompto gave a heavy sigh. He was sitting at the edge of the watch tower, leaning his arms against the railing and dangling his feet off the edge. Aylin was a few feet away, sitting with her legs crossed and her back to the imperial base. She was staring off into the distance, but every so often she’d glance over at him or fiddle with her cell phone.

Prompto kicked his feet back and forth impatiently. He hadn’t gotten the signal from Ignis or Gladio that they had started and the fortress in front of him was eerily silent. Until he got the go-ahead, they would just had to wait.

“Once you see reinforcements moving out of your area, that will be your signal to move. However, if they decide against sending aid to Fort Vaullerey after we’ve launched our assault, then wait for a message from Gladio or me, so you know that we have the military occupied on our front.” Ignis’ instructions were clear and logical, and Prompto had agreed to follow them for his own safety. Thankfully, Aylin didn’t protest and--outside of a few minor details--thought his strategy was solid.

‘Can’t really tell until we’re out there, but it seems like we’d make a pretty good team.’ Prompto mused, turning his head slightly to look at Aylin from the corner of his eye.

She was a bit shorter than him and she had an agile, but sturdy build. Her skin was a little darker than his and her green eyes were narrow, giving her a more exotic look. Prompto couldn’t put his finger on it, but he was sure he saw people who looked similar in the Kingsglaive, back when everyone was in Insomnia--and weren’t they from other territories on the outskirts of Lucis?

He was tempted to ask her about it, but refrained. Asking about her background would only risk questions about his own--questions he wasn’t comfortable answering quite yet. Besides, it didn’t really matter in the end--she was a pretty girl, she was friendly…

And she was going to help him take down an entire military fortress.  _ Big  _ plus.

“Hey,” He broke the silence as an odd thought crossed his mind.

“Hmm?” Aylin looked up from her cell phone.

“How’ d you get past my wire trap?” Granted, it wouldn’t have been difficult for a normal person to maneuver around, but with the ever-present darkness the wires would have been difficult to spot in the first place.

“Wire… trap?”

“Yeah, I looped some wires at the bottom of the stairwell, in case any MTs decided to swing by.” Prompto couldn’t help but pout, irked that his ‘awesome plan’ had been foiled so unwittingly.

“Oh, I climbed up through the second level,” Her reply was sheepish. “I was kinda paranoid about any Niffs seeing me from that side so I didn’t enter through the stairwell.”

“Aaaah, okay.” So she had been overly cautious. Granted, Prompto knew the workings of an MT far too well, so he was positive none of the troopers or armors would be able to spot anybody from that distance, but...

They both lapsed into another silence. It took several moments, but Prompto eventually realized that the quiet was comfortable--he didn’t feel the need to constantly fill the dead air with noise. It was a familiar feeling--one he felt when he was around Noctis, Ignis, and Gladio. Sure, the four of them talked a lot, but that was more out of interest as opposed to some social obligation.

It felt nice. 

He was jolted out of his thoughts when his cell phone buzzed in his hand. Aylin looked over at him as he unlocked the screen, his eyes scanning the message.

‘ _ We are beginning our operation. Message glad leo if you happen to spot any airships being diverted our way, so he can call for a retreat if necessary _ .’ Prompto snorted at the typo--obviously Ignis’ phone didn’t recognize Gladio’s name over the voice-to-text function and of course Ignis would be none the wiser unless he had the Shield proofread his messages beforehand.

Aylin had read the message over his shoulder. “So… that means we wait a little longer, right?”

Prompto nodded. “Yup, that’ll give them enough time to raise hell and get any reinforcements up and on the way over to them.”

“Leaving the base clear for us to destroy?” Aylin raised an eyebrow at him.

“Hell yeah.” 

Another buzz caught his attention and he opened a second message from Ignis.

‘ _ Send _ me  _ a message when you begin your assault. I shall assume you have started when my phone vibrates. Good luck _ .’

Aylin settled back into her spot, pulling her odd looking blades out and polishing them with the end of her shirt. Prompto let out a slow breath, trying to relax as he whispered into the night air.

“You too, guys… Be safe.”

 

It only took another hour before Prompto and Aylin heard movement in the garrison. They exchanged tense looks as the sound of heavy machinery came to life and after several minutes, one of the Niflheim airships appeared over the top of the stronghold, ascending slowly into the air. It rotated slowly before it began its flight, heading away from them and out towards the rest of the continent.

Out towards Ignis and Gladio.

Prompto had his phone out in an instant. ‘ _ One airship headed your way _ .’

The first message was sent out to Gladio and the second one to Ignis followed seconds after. ‘ _ Operation’s a-go, I’m heading in _ !’

Prompto double-checked that his phone was on silent before tucking it into his pocket--there was little chance he would get a response when they were also in the middle of their ambush.

He summoned his pistol, making sure it was fully loaded before concealing it and facing Aylin. “I'm good to go!”

She looked impressed by his unwitting display of the Lucian arsenal, but she focused quickly and unsheathed her blades, attaching them at the hilt to form a shortbow. “Ready when you are.” She replied, determination coloring her features.

Prompto felt a thrill at the familiarity of it all, and he grinned. “Then… Let’s do this!”

 

Getting into the military base was simple enough--Aylin was a decent shot with her arrows and Prompto didn’t miss a single bullet, keeping a silencer on the muzzle to conceal their location.

Prompto gave an impressed nod as Aylin took out another enemy in complete silence. “Nice work, dude. I-I mean… Aylin.”

“With standing targets? I guess,” She gave him a cheeky smile as they headed into the fortress, unchallenged due to their combined sharpshooting. She paused, realizing it would probably be better to express gratitude than sarcasm, but she couldn’t help but water down the praise regardless. “Thank you… but my brother was a lot better than I'll probably ever be.”

“Oh? And where's he?” The moment the question left Prompto’s mouth, he knew the answer and felt his heart sink.

Aylin confirmed his suspicion with a tight smile. **“** A Niff airship dropped MTs on us during a hunt, making the job way longer and more exhausting than it ever should have been… Before we knew it, night had fallen and the daemons appeared…”

The gunner ducked his head apologetically. “I'm sorry.”

She shook her head, taking a deep breath. “It was a few years ago, and now that I'm here,” She gestured at the fortress around them. “I can give Levant a bit of the justice he deserves.”

“Of course.” Prompto agreed, suddenly arming himself with his pistol. “Duck!”

Aylin obeyed, instinctively trusting the blonde’s judgement. Prompto vaulted over her shoulder and kicked out at an infantryman that had unexpectedly rounded the corner and lifted its gun at them.

The trooper's knees buckled under it, its balance thrown forward so Prompto could lock it's head under his arm. The blonde rotated and shifted his weight, bringing the soulless machinery to the ground. He gave a grunt as he snapped the MT’s neck, holding it still until he was sure it was gone for good.

Aylin held out her hand as he grimaced and shoved the trooper away from him, the light-resistant armor starting to dissolve into gray smoke.

“Phew, close call.” He muttered, accepting her help gratefully. “You okay?”

Aylin nodded, checking around the corner again for any other enemies before waving him forward. “Yeah, you?”

He locked eyes with the still fading infantryman and felt a chill run up his spine. For a moment, he caught an image of the emotionless red eyes mirrored in his own and he glanced down at his hands, flexing them slowly.

Human hands. Not an MT’s.

“Uh, Prompto?”

The sound of his name was almost like a balm. It wasn’t a lab number or specimen label--it was familiar.

It was home.

“Yup, sorry,” He cleared his throat, blinking as the last wisps of smoke dissolved into the night air. ‘That’s not who I am. And that’s not what I’ll become.’

He re-checked his gun--more out of habit than actual necessity--and took a quick breath before nodding at her. “All right, bring it on.”

 

Things grew more difficult as they progressed deeper into the base--while the MTs on the outer areas were on their own and could be picked off without being noticed, the ones closer to the center either traveled in groups or were in the views of others. After a few more close calls, Aylin and Prompto had managed to work their way towards the the control booths.

“That’s the one, right?” Aylin whispered, nodding her head towards one of the larger bungalows, where at least seven guards were visible.

“Yeah… Of course it had to be in front of that warehouse, too.” Prompto bit his lip, his eyes narrowed as he glared down the ten mechs lying in wait under the shelter. “If one of ‘em spots us, we’ll have all those giant magitek armors headed our way as well.”

“Greaaat.” The dryness in Aylin’s voice made Prompto chuckle. They were crouched on top of one of the shipping containers, keeping clear of any searchlights or sniper guards. Prompto scanned their surroundings once again, trying to find something--anything--that they could use to give them an advantage.

“If one of us could get up to those turrets, we’d be able to take down a lot of the MTs in a snap.” Aylin murmured.

“Mm but you’re pretty much a sitting duck for any snipers or armors.” The gunner pointed out. “We should get their numbers down before that… Or at least find a way to take out the big baddies easily.”

“True…” Aylin sighed. “Got any ideas?”

“Hold on a sec,” The blonde pursed his lips, his eyebrows knitting together in thought. His bright blue eyes darted around more, glancing over various construction pipelines, shipping freights, mounted turrets, those exploding energy tanks… Prompto inhaled sharply, sitting up so he could dig around in his pockets. “Now I do.”

“Oh?”

“Yup. Gimme a sec,” Prompto pulled out a Lumen Flare, turning it over in his gloved hands. Back in Niflheim, he had some leftover from his time in the Magitek production facility. However, once  _ he  _ started making things difficult… Well, it wasn't until Noctis regained access to his powers in Gralea that Prompto was able to get his hands on another weapon.

Sure, Prompto might not have been able to steal any of the Niflheim technology to use against them… But that sure didn't stop him from creating replicas that worked just as well--or in some cases, even better.

“Is that a… a grenade?” Aylin looked impressed as her eyes skimmed over the craftsmanship. “A Niff grenade?”

“Eh, kinda. ‘Borrowed’ some ideas and added a few of my own. I wasn't gonna use it since it packs a punch and I wouldn’t have been able to get out of its blast range quick enough…” He turned to Aylin, gesturing at her weapon. “Buuut now that  _ you're _ here…”

She raised an eyebrow. “Hmm, I get where you’re going, but I’ll need a target to aim at first.”

“Right, I just gotta check one thing.” Prompto flopped back over onto his stomach, squinting in the direction of the main warehouse. He waited for the searchlight to make another round, trying to confirm what he had spotted earlier. “Hmmm… yes!”

“Keep it down,” Aylin chastised him. “What's up?”

“In the warehouse, not quite in the center… it's a little to the right.” He turned her in the correct direction.

“The freight?”

“No, right next to it, the stack of barrel-things.”

Aylin leaned forward a bit and Prompto scooted closer to her, trying to center his pointer finger. After a moment, she nodded. “I see something that looks kinda like that covered under a military tarp…”

“Bingo,” The blonde gave her a thumbs up. “I've seen those things a million times; they're magitek energy tanks. They power the control panels and armors aaand... they're  _ highly _ flammable.”

Aylin’s face lit up in understanding. “Aha, so one of your grenades and my arrow, plus those energy tanks…”

“Equals...!” Prompto made an exploding motion with his hands. “We'll have to be as far back as possible, but that should clear out that entire warehouse in one go.”

Had they not been surrounded by hostiles, Aylin would have given an impressed whistle. “It'll be that strong?”

“With the energy tanks? Totally. Even if the explosion’s weaker than I’m expecting it to be, those magitek armors will be nothin’ but junk.”

“And… if it’s stronger than you think?”

“Ahaha…” Prompto leaned on his elbows, propping his head up and looking proud of himself. “We’ll be able to blow the whole warehouse straight to hell.”


	6. Bust-a-Base!

Aylin and Prompto worked quickly once they had formulated their strategy. They backtracked outwards, making sure to leave some room for error in case Aylin’s arrow didn't fly as expected.

“Think you can make the shot from here?” Prompto had long since relinquished the explosive to Aylin, letting the young woman get a feel for the weight of the device as they knelt at their chosen recon position.

Aylin was busy lashing the flare to a bundled set of three arrows, trying to get it as sturdy as possible. “From this distance…” She paused in her handiwork, closing one eye and tilting her head as she took aim at the center of the warehouse. “Yeah, I’ll be good.”

“Sweet.” He grinned at her. “Once that goes off, we should head for the turret on our right.”

“Do you wanna take the sniper there out, or…” Aylin gave a pointed look at the trooper standing motionlessly at the mounted gun.

“I can totally make that shot, but I bet the MT’ll move behind the turret so I might not have an opening. If I give you a boost, can you handle it?” Prompto folded his arms, concerned.

“Shouldn’t be a problem.” The young woman shrugged at him. “After that… It’s just disabling that central control panel, right?”

“Yup. I’ll clear out anything around the turret, so you’ll just have to watch my back while I work on that panel. After that’s done, we get out, and then mission complete!”

“Okay, sounds like a plan.”

The blonde’s grin reappeared and he allowed himself to feel confident in his abilities. ‘I can do this. I can  _ really _ pull this off. I’ve tackled things way tougher than this, it’ll be a cinch.’

Aylin tugged the wire securing the grenade a few times, making sure it was pulled tight before she knotted it down. She held up her contraption, frowning at it. “Bit heavy…” She mumbled.

“...Will you be okay?” Prompto questioned again. They could move forward a bit more but he would rather not chance it--the explosion was going to be huge and it would be stupid if they got caught in the blast radius.

The archer contemplated the device again, weighing it in her hands and lifting it up to her bow. Her arms held steady as she nocked the set of arrows to the bowstring and her eyes squinted at her target. “I’ll just aim high to counter the extra weight. Should be good enough.”

He nodded. “Yeah, all we need is the flare to land close enough to detonate the energy tanks… The rest should do itself.”

She sighed, lowering her weapon. “I hope so… Lev would have made this shot, no problem.”

“Your brother?”

Aylin dipped her head once.

Prompto bit his lip, recognizing the familiar self-doubt. It was a constant emotion he had to deal with, especially considering his remarkable three companions and dubious background. “Uh, I mean… I never knew him, but I’m sure you’ll be able to do just fine, too. You've done pretty awesome so far.”

“Thanks,” She gave him a slight smile before refocusing her attention. “All right… You ready?”

“You bet.” Prompto brandished his pistol, his expression hardening as Aylin lifted her bow.

Aylin exhaled slowly as she pulled her arm back, the bow shifting in her fingers as she aimed carefully. She rotated the arrow slightly--making sure the flare would clear her bow without running into the side of it--before making eye contact with Prompto one last time.

‘Wow, nice eyes...” The blonde found himself distracted.

His stray thought was cut off as Aylin looked away and relaxed her finger, letting the arrow fly.

There was a crushing silence that followed, as if the arrow had sucked the air away as it flew into the distance. Prompto found himself holding his breath as time slowed and his blood began racing.

The arrow struck low on its mark, hitting the bottom of one of the energy tanks, but the force was enough.

Prompto didn’t even have time to cover his ears before the darkness exploded into life, making the ground beneath them shake violently with the impact of the blast.

“W-waaah!” The gunner was blown backwards onto his rear and he instinctively grabbed Aylin, who had also lost her footing. They lay low on the top of the freight container until the waves of heat had stopped surging past them, before finally lifting their heads to examine the damage.

“H...Holy shit.” Prompto swore as he stood and helped Aylin to her feet. The entire warehouse was engulfed in smoke and as they watched in awe they could hear secondary explosions going off--the magitek armors were self-destructing due to the irreparable damage inflicted upon them. The front and back of the now-ruined building had blown out completely, and the blonde was thrilled to see that the force had done much more than he had expected.

“The control booth!” Aylin spoke loudly, barely able to hear over the first explosion and the cacophony of debris and destroyed magitek sounding around them.

Prompto nodded, a breathless grin on his face. The entire shack had been demolished, the walls crumbling and the panel a melted heap of scrap metal.

There were loud metallic thuds that sounded behind them and they whipped around. The single patrolling magitek armor had spotted them, thanks to all the additional light the flaming warehouse provided.

“Crap,” They both dove in opposite directions as the armor opened fire, raining a shower of bullets over the freight.

Prompto landed roughly, allowing his body to move with the fall so he could roll to his feet. He looked over and Aylin was already up and running, her arrows effectively drawing the attention of the mech.

“Hey! The turret!” The gunner shouted, ducking as a trooper slashed at him. Prompto’s eyes narrowed and he charged.

“Gotcha!” He fired a crackshot into the leg of the distracted magitek armor, effectively bringing it down to its knees and giving Aylin enough time to get around it. “Get to the turret!”

Prompto was no longer the silly photographer who often injured his tailbone attempting to pull off ridiculous trick shots while leaping around with his guns.  
This time, he was dead serious.

“On my way!” He barely heard Aylin’s reply as he flung himself into the mass of magitek soldiers. All of Prompto’s excess energy surged forward and gave him a hyper-awareness of everything around him, throwing his senses into overdrive.

“Watch your right!”

He dodged with the warning, straightening up in time to see Aylin taking a leap at him, whipping her body around and striking the infantryman in a flying roundhouse kick. The trooper went down with a heavy thud and Aylin’s weapon--now separated into dual blades--plunged into the gap in its chest armor, silencing it for good.

“Whoo, nice one!” Prompto followed up Aylin’s attack with several rounds of bullets, keeping the MTs back far enough for the two of them to head towards the turret. His eyes widened as he spotted the sniper taking its place at the mounted gun. “Ah, run!!”

They split up, weaving in separate directions as another hailstorm of ammunition exploded around them. Prompto reached the tower first and he spun on his heel to see Aylin making her way towards him, with MTs hot on her tail.

“Take this!” Prompto yelled, summoning his auto crossbow and unleashing a flurry of bolts, taking care not to hit his ally. He could feel small cuts and scrapes prickling at his arms and face--he had managed to avoid the bullets but the debris was a different story--but he ignored it. He had been through worse before, after all.

Much worse.

Aylin put on a burst of speed to get past the enemy machine gun fire, switching her blades so they were both in one hand. She locked her gaze on him, her brow furrowed in concentration. “Get ready!”

Prompto reloaded his crossbow gun before letting it dissipate into thin air and nodding. “Go for it!” 

Aylin ran straight at him and Prompto clasped his hands together in front of him, kneeling down slightly. She slowed just as she reached him and stepped up onto his palms, bracing her free hand on his shoulder.

“Hup!!” Prompto heaved upwards, tossing her easily into the air. She was a lighter than Aranea and he glanced back, making sure she would be able to clear the height of the turret platform. She flew past it with ease and continued a few more feet above that before gravity finally took over.

Aylin used her inertia to help strengthen her blow as she descended onto the trooper in command of the turret gun. It fell easily under her blades and it only took a moment to situate herself at the gattling gun and give Prompto the thumbs up.

“I’ve got your back!”

He nodded once and launched himself back into the fray. The magitek armor he had stunned earlier had finally clamored to its feet, taking aim at the blonde. He dodged around the rockets it fired from its arms, sliding between its legs and firing his pistols, keeping its attention solely on him while Aylin cleared out the rest of the troopers with the gun. She wasn't a great shot with the heavy machinery, but she made sure to give Prompto a lot of room to work with in case her bullets went astray.  
Prompto kept his body moving, constantly weaving around the magitek armor so it couldn’t get a clear shot at him. He spotted a trooper taking aim at him and he grabbed his drillbreaker, pulling the charge on it as he spun and aimed at the giant armor bearing down on him.  
“This’ll be… a blast!” Prompto overloaded the energy output on the machinery so it exploded with enough force both trip up the armor and send him flying backwards. Prompto slammed his back into the chest of the infantryman, dazing it long enough for him to pull his handguns and fire two shots into its head.

“It’s over!” He taunted the MT, his habitual lines leaving his mouth without worry, grinning as he relinquished the pistols with a rare air of confidence. 

That is, until something slammed into his back from behind.


	7. The Bigger They Are...

Prompto gave a shout of pain as the magitek armor swung out at him unexpectedly, its arm hitting his back hard. He landed, feeling the potions he had shatter under his weight. Thankfully, they also healed some of the damage he had sustained, but…

“I’m all out…” He mumbled, leaping to his feet and patting his pockets to check. “A-ah!”

Before the armor could strike again, there was a flurry of shots that erupted near Prompto and he ducked, turning to see Aylin firing at the immobilized magitek armor and covering his escape.

“Thanks!” The blonde gave a thumbs as he took in his surroundings, taking a quick breath to orient himself. Everything up to that point had gone without a hitch, so hopefully they wouldn’t need the extra curatives.

“We'll be okay,” He spotted a nearby MT reloading its gun and he sprinted towards it, leaping into the air at the last moment and attempting to land a flying roundhouse kick, like Aylin had before.

“Hraah!” His foot connected in what would have been a flawless maneuver, had his inertia not stopped halfway through his turn. Instead, he found himself caught with his leg extended and his body still horizontal as physics took over.  
"Uwaah!!" He raised his arms up in time to stop himself from landing face-first, the impact winding him as he went through a brief existential crisis and wondered why he always made such poor life choices. After the shock subsided however, he rolled back onto his feet, shaking out his arms and throwing himself back into the fray with a sheepish chuckle.

By then most of the base had been cleared of hostiles with the exception of several more troopers and the still-standing magitek armor. Prompto ran forward to engage the giant mech once more, but swore when he saw it aiming its missiles at Aylin and her turret.

“No… Get out of there!” Prompto shouted, waving his arms wildly in an attempt to catch her attention.

Aylin spotted him just in time. She glanced up as she heard the whistling of the incoming missiles and launched herself off the high platform with a scream.

The explosions that resulted caught Aylin in midair and she was sent sprawling to the floor where she curled up, trying to avoid the shower of metal and rubble raining down around her.

“Shit!!” Prompto fired his pistols, unloading all of the rounds in an attempt to get the magitek armor to chase him and give her time to recover. The mech responded only slightly, blasting a flamethrower in his direction and forcing him to scramble backwards to avoid the scorching heat. It continued stomping towards the young woman, who had only just struggled to her feet.

“Dammit!” Prompto was too far to use his machinery on the armor, leaving him unable to redirect its attention. He yelped when a trooper suddenly rammed its gun into his back and he responded with a point-blank bullet to its chest. Its arms locked, leaving an opening for Prompto to swing his leg around and kick its weapon into the air, its neck snapping backwards with the force.

“Snatched!” Prompto caught the heavy gun mainly by instinct, only realizing what he had stolen once it was in his hands.

A bazooka.

“Aw, yeah!” The blonde knelt immediately, bracing the weapon against his body and shifting until he could line up his shot. The magitek armor had already begun attacking Aylin, who was doing everything she could to stay out of its reach.

“I’ve got this.” Prompto took a deep breath to steady his aim, knowing that a missed shot could seriously hurt his new ally. “After all…”

He pulled the trigger.

“I never miss!”

 

Aylin winced. She was covered in scratches, but she forced herself to keep moving. The armor had reached her far faster than she had expected, putting the young woman on the defensive as it swung its arms and fired all manner of missiles, bullets, and flamethrowers her way.

She was glad the troopers on her side had already been destroyed--she had to focus all her attention on the magitek armor and her back was wide open to any attacks.

“Whoa!” She leapt backwards, arching her back in a flip as the mech stomped into the ground, leaving cracked tarmac where she had been standing seconds before.

‘This damn thing is relentless,’ Aylin continued her frantic dance around the armor, unable to find any openings wide enough for her to get a hit safely in. It wasn’t until she passed under a shadow that she realized that she was getting backed into the walls of the stronghold.

“Shit, no…” She attempted to dodge to the side, only to be stopped by a wall of fire as the mech blasted its flamethrower. She couldn’t see around the bright flames and was about ready to resign to her demise when a tremendous thud vibrated through the air, jolting the mech in front of her.

The magitek armor suddenly stepped back and Aylin didn’t waste a moment to duck out from underneath it, passing the hostile machine just in time to see a bright shot fly past her and strike the armor again. It staggered with the impact, its movements jerky and sparks flying from its arms and legs. Aylin hopped a few more feet back, adding her arrows to the series of missile shots and taking down the last three MTs that had finally made their way over.

“One more!” Prompto pulled the trigger again, the recoil making his voice crack.

Aylin ducked behind the armor, letting the missile hit home as she fired another arrow into the final trooper in the garrison. As she watched the infantryman fall the magitek armor gave an earsplitting series of creaks, leaning forward until its weight brought it crashing down to the ground and leaving an echoing silence in its wake.

Aylin panted, a grin spreading across her face. They had taken the base down! She placed her hands on her knees, catching her breath as she looked up over the destroyed magitek remains at the blonde standing several yards away.

“Yaaaaahoo!!!!” Prompto’s voice rang out loudly in the empty space he punched the air, leaping for joy. “We’re alive!! Let’s cele--”

He broke off, his face suddenly contorting strangely.

Aylin straightened up, glancing behind her and expecting another enemy. Nothing. Then what--

“Aylin, move! The--” The terror in Prompto’s yell scared her, but before she could react the floor jolted underneath her and everything went white.


	8. Reckless Running

Prompto had been careless. After having fought so many MTs alongside allies who knew what they were doing and how to handle the heavy armors, it never crossed the gunner’s mind to warn his newest companion of the danger she was in.

It wasn’t until he had double-checked his own position that he had realized Aylin was still standing beside the magitek armor, and by then it was too late.

“Aylin, move! The--” Prompto’s howl was inaudible under the armor’s self-destruct sequence processing and he could only watch.

Watch in horror as the mech exploded,  throwing Aylin’s body back and engulfing her in a wash of metal and fire.

“N-no!!” He scrambled forward into the flames, ignoring the searing heat that burned easily through his gloves as he kicked and yanked aside debris until he could see her.

She was pinned under what had been one of the magitek armor’s arms, the twisted machinery almost concealing her amidst the smoke.

“Aylin!” Prompto vaulted over the flames to her side, trying to figure out the best way to move the smoldering metal without further injuring her.

She was unconscious and Prompto gritted his teeth, cursing. He lifted the remains of the mech, his arms and legs protesting as he used his weight to get the arm high enough to push aside.

“C’mon, dammit!” Prompto hissed in pain as the red-hot metal scorched through his vest and began burning his shoulder and neck. “Move!!”

There was a terrific grinding noise and the armor suddenly shifted forward, almost causing the blonde to land on Aylin. The flames had melted enough of the armor that it gave way at the arm’s joint, allowing Prompto to shove it aside.

He panted, clutching at his burns and kneeling beside the injured young woman.

His heart plummeted as he adjusted the light on his lapel in order to see her in more clearly than the flickering firelight would allow… and spotted the sharp glint of metal wedged deep into her side.

“No, fuck…” Prompto groaned as he examined the shrapnel. It was a few inches wide, but with the blood soaking into her shirt, Prompto couldn't tell how deep it had cut into her.

All he knew was she needed help, and fast.

He reached around into his pocket and swore again when he grabbed at empty space--his potions! He had taken all the curatives he had with him so there was nothing he could use to help lessen the damage.

“What the hell do I do?!” He mumbled to himself, wishing he had Ignis’ expertise to help guide him. “Damn, uh… shelter. Gotta find shelter.”

It took Prompto a couple of tries to lift Aylin--trying to figure out a good way to carry her was way more difficult than he expected, especially now that his shoulder was searing in pain. He couldn't help but cry out softly as he hoisted her in his arms and headed for one of the standing control booths--It wasn't the best hiding place to keep away from daemons, but he was hoping the bright flames from all the explosions would deter their appearance until he could get help.

He settled with Aylin’s head in his lap, pulling out his (thankfully undamaged) cell phone and scrolling to Ignis’ number. 

And stopping.

What if Ignis and Gladio were still fighting at their base? A phone call would at best distract them and at worst jeopardize their whole assault. He couldn’t call them now, not with so much at stake… But...

“Goddammit…” Prompto’s hands began trembling and he stared down at Aylin and he could feel breath catching in his throat as he began to panic. There was no one else he could turn to for help. After all, they were the only friends he had.

Her breathing was labored and her face was contorted in pain. There were patches of bright red skin on her arms, neck, and face, showing where flames had scorched her, as well as cuts and scrapes from both the battle and the explosion. Her shirt was still damp and sticky from the blood oozing out of her side, but with the metal fragment still in place it seemed as if most of the bleeding had stopped.

All in all, it didn’t seem like a very promising situation.

Prompto could feel tendrils of guilt worming their way into his mind, suffocating his thoughts and drowning his confidence. How could he have been so careless? Aylin had been a spectacular ally to fight alongside--she had not only helped him destroy the garrison, but had saved his life multiple times throughout the ordeal, too.

And he returned the favor by blowing her up and watching her bleed to death.

“ _ You lose your friends and kill your family… why, you've no one left _ .” Cruel words echoed in the gunner’s mind and he flinched, half-expecting to see a tall, imposing figure looming over him.

“Dammit!!” Prompto curled in on himself, his forehead almost touching Aylin’s. He was powerless to do anything to help her.

Who was he to think he could actually pull this off without screwing something up?

What a fucking joke.

“I'm sorry.” He whispered coarsely. “I'm s--!”

He yelped when his cellphone--which had been clenched in his hand--buzzed.

“W-what…?” He stared down at the name in confusion, momentarily thrown out of the beginnings of a panic attack. Sure, they had exchanged numbers in case one of the other guys’ phones were out of commission, but he expected to actually receive a call… At least not from her.

“H-hello, Cindy?”

“Oh, heavens... thank goodness ya answered! Paw-paw just told me one of them airships is headin’ your way! Y'all need to skedaddle, and quick!”

“W-what?!” Prompto exclaimed. “You've got to be kidding me…”

“Take care, y’hear? Head back as fast as ya can.”

Talk about shitty luck. The gunner sighed at his own misfortune. “R-right. Oh, Cindy?’

“Yeah?”

“Have you heard from Ignis or Gladio?”

“Can't say I have, hun.”

Prompto put his phone on speaker and shoved it into his pocket, forcing his battered limbs to move. “If you do, can you tell them to call me right away?”

“Sure thing, just leave it to me.”

“Thanks.”

The line went dead and Prompto lifted Aylin again, the pain in his arm doubling after his short rest. “I c-can do this…”

 

Cindy's message had come in the nick of time--by the time Prompto had gotten out of the control booth, he could see the headlights or an approaching airship over his head. He had only minutes to make his way to the west side of the garrison before the vessel appeared, its cargo hold opening to drop several MTs into the center of the base.

Prompto pressed against the back wall, biting his lip. The only entrance to the garrison was on the eastern side, but with Aylin cradled in his arms he would have been spotted and shot down before they could escape. He knew there was no way out on the eastern side, but maybe, just maybe the explosion…

Yes!

Prompto checked his surroundings, making sure no MTs would spot him before he ran as quietly and quickly as he could towards the small gap that had been blown open during their assault on the warehouse. It took him a couple of tries but after an excruciating amount of pain, he was able to squeeze the both of them through the hole and out into the desert.

“Gotta keep moving…” He wheezed out, his feet moving automatically. If he could get to Hammerhead, maybe Aylin would have a chance.

But would he be able to make it that far? What about the daemons?

A distant roar answered his fears and he spotted an iron giant on the main road, blocking his way. It hadn’t seen the two wounded humans several yards away but Prompto knew he wouldn’t be able to outrun or combat the daemon if it did.

“Dammit, where…? Ugh, I can't take this anymore,” He lamented, wincing as he adjusted Aylin in his arms. His eyes widened as he stared out towards the east.

A telltale plume of bluish smoke was rising from somewhere close.

“A haven.” Prompto had forgotten about the second campsite on the other side of the stronghold and he praised the Astrals for its existence, struggling over to it.

Surprisingly, two chocobos, a backpack, and a small tent were there to greet him. There was no one else in sight.

“No way… I must be dreaming.” He muttered, trying his best to get Aylin under the shelter of the tent and only managing to get her legs into it.

Well, better than nothing.

Prompto then dragged his feet over to the backpack--It wasn't very nice of him to be using someone else's belongings, but he figured that a dire situation like his warranted enough of an excuse.

He sorted through the bag, relieved to find some bandages, water, and food rations packed in it.

“I'm not sure how this works…” The blonde did his best to pour water and clean off and patch up some of Aylin’s superficial wounds. He paused at the metal still embedded in her side.

It seemed like most of the bleeding had stopped--if the drying blood on Aylin’s shirt was any indication--and he knew from the few first-aid lessons Ignis gave him that he shouldn't pull the metal out.

That'd just make the bleeding a lot worse, wouldn't it? Or maybe he  _ was _ supposed to pull it out to prevent infection?

“Man…” After deliberating a few moments, Prompto decided to trust his first instinct, leaving it in and doing what he could to clean the wound without aggravating it again.

“There. W-whoa…” Once he straightened back up, a wave of dizziness overcame him. He was finally coming down from the battle-high and his body was responding in kind. 

Prompto rolled over onto his back next to her, trying to catch his breath as the adrenaline wore off and pain and exhaustion took over.

One of the chocobos--a white one that had been watching the gunner work--crooned at the disheveled pair, walking over.

“Heya, b-be careful.” Prompto croaked out a warning, hoping the bird wouldn’t step on the young woman. It settled next to Aylin, halfway under the tent itself as it looked over the unconscious woman’s body and then up at him, blinking slowly.

The second, pale green chocobo also sauntered over, trilling at him.

“D-don’t think you… could get some help, could you?” Prompto breathed as it stopped next to him, bending its neck down to nudge his face. It was more gentle than his own chocobo, who was energetic and rowdy at the best of times.

The white chocobo--which had 

“A-ah…” Prompto clutched at the burns on his shoulder as the green chocobo nudged his face again with growing persistence, forcing the blonde to sit up. “S-sorry buddy, but I’m hurting real bad right now. W-we can play later.”

The colored bird exhaled in response--almost sounding like an exasperated snort--but it continued scooting Prompto over until it could curl up underneath him, acting like a giant feathery pillow.

“O-oh. Thanks,” The gunner was surprised--both of the birds were extraordinarily gentle and intelligent. They also didn’t seem to be wary of the two humans intruding on the campsite, which was unlike most chocobos, which tended to be flighty around new people.

Prompto gasped, his body jerking in surprise and pain when his cell phone buzzed, startling him. The green chocobo also flinched, letting out a squawk.

“Yee-hello?”

“Prompto!”

He had never been so happy to hear Ignis’ voice. “Hey Iggy, what’s up…?”

“We just checked in with Cindy and she told us of your predicament. Are you all right?”

“I’ve… Well,” Prompto winced, deciding to be honest. “I’ve been better.”

“Where are you?”

“A haven, it’s west of the base.” The gunner bit his lip as he glanced over at the injured young woman beside him. “I… I can’t make it back to Hammerhead like this, Iggy.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll head towards you now. We encountered Aranea during our assault and she was gracious enough to lend us use of her airship.”

“Aranea, huh?” Prompto couldn’t help but smile at the familiar name. He made a note to himself, promising to do something nice for the mercenary in return for the amount of times she had helped him. “A-awesome. Tell her I said ‘hi’.”

“I expect you shall be able to tell her yourself, once we arrive.” Ignis’ words were layered with meaning and Prompto huffed out a short laugh. 

“R-right. You guys might want to hurry.” He looked over at Aylin again and the movement sent a sharp pain through his arm, pulling a groan from his lips. “P-probably lost too much blood…”

“We’re on our way. Hang on, Prompto!”

“Yup, don’t worry about me… I’m not going anywhere.”


	9. Search and Rescue

Prompto heard the airship before he saw it. Weakened by the long battle and the burn injuries running down his arms and neck, he had closed his eyes to try and relax, only opening them to check on Aylin’s condition.

Her face was distressed, eyebrows knitted together and her lips parted as she took shallow, raspy breaths. She was trembling and her skin was cold despite the fact that there were two warm, giant birds curled up around her and a tent partially covering her legs.

Prompto groaned, forcing himself into a sitting position as he pulled his vest off. The fabric stuck to the burns in his shoulder, peeling the skin and making the blonde cry out in agony.

He took several gulps of air once the vest was in his lap, letting his vision steady and willing himself not to blackout from the pain. Thankfully, the cool night air was a balm to the burns and using his good hand, he gently laid the vest over Aylin, taking care not to go anywhere near her injury.

Prompto looked up blearily towards Hammerhead, his eyes narrowing in confusion as he stared into the darkness. He could have sworn he had seen Aranea’s red airship flying towards him in the distance, but it had somehow disappeared.

He gave a grunt, apologizing to the green chocobo as he used its body to help push himself to his feet. He stumbled forward a couple of steps towards the edge of the haven, squinting.

Ah, there it was. It had landed in the distance, it’s bright spotlights turned off. Prompto gave a sigh, knowing that they had parked a good distance away to make sure the Empire wouldn’t be able to see them from the recently destroyed base. However, as he continued watching the airship two smaller specks of light caught his attention.

Ignis and Gladio were heading towards him and he almost started sobbing in relief. They had made it. They had all made it through their invasions!  

He glanced back at Aylin, worry spreading over his face.

Well,  _ almost  _ all of them had made it.

No. Prompto shook his head. He was going to make sure that she did.

 

Gladio and Ignis didn't really know what to expect when they left to rescue Prompto.

From what Ignis could infer from their phone conversation, it sounded as if Prompto had gotten injured during his encounter with the Empire. If the gunner couldn’t to get to Hammerhead and was stranded at the haven, unable to move…

If Ignis was being honest with himself, he was expecting to find Prompto half-dead at the campsite, covered in his own blood.

A confused sound from Gladio caught the strategist’s attention. “What is it?”

The shield didn't slow his pace as he replied. “I dunno, but it looks like Prompto was able to set up a decent campsite. There's a tent and everything…

Ignis frowned. If Prompto’s situation was as dire as he had made it sound over the phone, there should have been no way he could set up any sort of shelter. “Perhaps he set it up beforehand?”

“Don't think so. That's definitely not one of our tents…” Gladio stopped and Ignis barely managed to avoid running into him. “There, I see him… He… doesn't look  _ that _ beat up.”

“...Curious.”

The two sped up towards their companion, eager to figure out what the was going on.

Prompto waved his good arm at the pair of approaching Crownsguard, waiting for them to get closer to the campsite. “You guys are here, thank god…”

Ignis interrupted his greeting. “Prompto, are you all right?”

“Wh… Yeah, I’m fine.” The blonde dismissed his injuries with a shake of his head. “B-but…” He gestured helplessly at the bloodstained figure behind him, mostly concealed by the lopsided tent and a concerned, white chocobo. “I don’t know about…”

The two could finally see the campsite more clearly and Gladio squinted in the poor light, trying to make out what Prompto was pointing at.

What he saw almost gave him a heart attack.

" _Noct_?!" The shield launched himself onto the plateau, his face paling as he staggered over to the familiar-looking mop of hair and making the chocobos squawk in alarm.  
"W-what?!" Ignis' voice was much louder than normal, but Prompto was already waving his arm wildly in a useless attempt at defusing the panic.  
"N-no, it's not!! I thought so too at first, cuz her hair…” Prompto explained quickly, his eyes wide.

Gladio heaved a sigh as he took a closer look and realized the young woman was too small to be the prince he had known all his life. “Fuck, Prompto, scared the shit outta me. But she really doesn’t look too good.”

“Y-yeah, that’s what I needed to call you two about. Aylin joined me to help destroy the base…” Prompto helped Ignis up onto the campsite, his words picking up speed as he began panicking again.

Ignis silently took stock of the young woman’s wounds, his hands tentative and gentle. Gladio was beside him, quietly describing the injuries to help the strategist get a more detailed idea of what he was working with.

"S-she saved my neck back there and I didn't warn her about the armor's self-destruct... Everything went so well but then this happened and now… It's all my fault, she helped me take them down and she's--"  
"Prompto." Both Ignis and Gladio cut off the blonde's rambling and he shut his mouth, forcing himself to take a deep breath.  
"Please. Please, we have to help her..."  
  


Getting Aylin back to Aranea’s airship was much easier when Prompto had Ignis, Gladio, and a full supply of potions at his disposal. Once the burns on his neck and arms were treated, he was able to lift Aylin easily, letting the other two keep guard as they ran. The two chocobos were surprisingly adamant about following the group, confusing the three men.

“Perhaps these birds belong to Aylin?” Ignis asked.

“I...I wouldn’t know. I met her in the watchtower.” Prompto admitted.

However, when the white chocobo approached the blonde and gently nuzzled into Aylin’s cheek, crooning softly, he couldn’t help but agree with Ignis.

“I guess we should take them back to Hammerhead with us. If they’re not hers, we can always give them back to whoever they do belong to, or drop them off with Wiz.” Prompto watched as Aylin’s expression briefly softened at the chocobo’s affections.

“Very well.”

Aranea had her airship ready to go by the time they had arrived. Her eyes narrowed as she spotted Aylin cradled in Prompto’s arms as they boarded, the two large birds in tow.

“How long’s she been like that?” The dragoon inquired after they had taken off, making for Hammerhead to get better treatment for the young woman’s wounds. As it was, Ignis wasn’t able to remove the shrapnel from Aylin’s side--his confidence in his abilities stunted by his lack of vision.

Prompto looked at the older woman in surprise. He knew the commodore wasn’t heartless, but he hadn’t expected her to take such an interest, either. “It happened right at the end… so maybe a couple hours?”

She clicked her tongue, worry crossing briefly over her features before smoothing into it’s usual coolness. “Well… Aylin’s a tough girl. She’ll make it.”

“Wait...You know her?”

“Yeah, when she was still traveling with her brother. They wanted to be part of my mercenary troop… ‘til they found out I was going under the Empire’s payroll.” Aranea shook her head. She huffed out a sigh at the memory. “Wouldn’t have taken ‘em in anyhow--they were still fresh out of Insomnia and would’ve been daemon fodder traveling with me.”

“Insomnia? They were from the Crown City?” Prompto looked down at the young woman with wide eyes, as if staring at her would magically reveal more about her heritage.

“Gee, are you always so curious about people you just met?” The silver-haired mercenary poked fun at the blonde, a sly grin on her face.

“H-huh?”

“Anyways, we’re landing. Better get moving if you wanna save your girlfriend, Shortcake.” She clapped him on his uninjured shoulder before heading towards the front of the airship, where Ignis and Gladio were talking quietly.

Prompto sputtered, his face reddening at the sudden implication. “Girlfriend?!” He gathered Aylin in his arms again, protesting weakly and letting the words die on his lips.

“S-she’s n-not…” He mumbled, starting as the two chocobos flanked him on both sides, nuzzling him and his unconscious charge. He pursed his lips, his grip on the young woman tightening protectively. “I-I just met her, she's not…”


	10. Introductions and Familiar Faces

Cleaning and mending Aylin’s wounds in the safety of Hammerhead was a much neater ordeal than the botched, messy cleanup Prompto had struggled through. Once Aranea--who naturally had some medical training as head of her mercenary troop--and Ignis had ensured that no other shards of metal had broken off inside the young woman’s wound, they were able to close it with a couple of potions and elixirs.

“Can’t go sealing up bullets or metal under the skin--it’s impossible to get out after.”

“Indeed. The same applies to broken bones--unless it is done shortly after the fracture or break, the injury needs to set properly before curatives can be used, or the magic will heal it incorrectly.”

Prompto nodded as he watched them work, still consumed with guilt for allowing Aylin to get hurt under his watch. “Kinda like that time Noct dislocated his knee and you wouldn’t let him use an elixir on it, right Iggy?”

“Yes, and it was quite an effort to restrain him from doing so. Although, the prospect of having to re-break and set it properly may have been a good enough deterrent, as he did not complain so much once I had explained it to him.”

“Hah, I’ll bet pretty boy  _ really _ liked that.” Aranea sat back as Ignis applied the final elixir, reaching for the damp towel Prompto was wringing out and cleaning her hands. “Well, we did what we could. She’ll be all right.”

“Yes, it will be a couple of days before she will be well enough to fight again, but… She is alive.”

“Phew,” Prompto hadn’t realized how tense he had been until his muscles loosened up. “Thanks guys…”

“Of course.” Ignis dipped his head once.

“But there’s something I wanna know, Prompto.” Gladio spoke up from his chair across the room. He had been watching the entire ordeal quietly, only looking up from his book if a new pitcher of hot water or other supplies were needed.

“Yeah?”

“How’d you two end up fighting together?”

“O-oh. Well…” The blonde scratched the back of his head sheepishly. “Geez, where do I begin…?”

 

Aylin didn’t wake up for several more hours. By then, Ignis and Gladio had retired to the room next door--Takka had been generous enough to lend the group use of the restaurant for the night--leaving Prompto to watch over the young woman as she rested.

The gunner had almost dozed off by the time Aylin woke up, her expression scrunching up in pain. “Aaah!!” She couldn’t stop the piercing cry that left her mouth as she attempted to sit up and failed spectacularly.

Prompto leapt to his feet, startled into alertness. “W-what? A-Aylin, you’re awake!”

She looked over her injuries and spotted the shrapnel that had been cleaned off and set off to the side of her bed, putting two and two together as she groaned in pain. A steady stream of curses left her mouth and she gritted her teeth.  
  
"Are you feeling okay?" Prompto knew the question was stupid, but he had to ask anyways.  
  
"Well, to tell you the truth i feel like i just had a giant chunk of metal yanked out of my side,” Her voice was dry, but the look she gave him was good-natured. “But otherwise I’m faaantastic."  
  
He didn’t take the joke as well as she thought he would. "Damn… I’m so sorry. I should have warned you, I knew it was going to happen but I got distracted and was stupid--”  
  
Aylin raised her hands, regretting the motion as it sent another jab of pain through her abdomen. "Don't beat yourself up too much... I wasn't walking into that completely ignorant. I had seen the armors self-destruct before but was just as careless as you. No one's really at fault here."

A knock interrupted their conversation and Gladio stuck his head in.

“We heard a yell and came to check in.” He walked in once Prompto waved him over, followed closely by Ignis. “How’re you feeling?”

Aylin regarded the two men with wide eyes, intimidated by their sudden appearance. She glanced over a Prompto and after noticing he was completely at ease with them, relaxed. “I...I’ve been better.” She replied honestly.

Gladio huffed out a laugh and Ignis’ lips quirked up into a small smile. She blinked at them for another moment before speaking again.

"Sooo… Gladiolus Amicitia and Ignis Scientia, right?"

The two men looked surprised and Gladio shot an exasperated glance at Prompto.  
  
"Wow, how much of our life stories has Prompto blabbed about already?"  
  
"H-hey," Prompto gave a small noise of protest, but Aylin chuckled.  
  
"Not Prompto, actually. The Marshall, Cor the Immortal. He told all the hunters to keep an eye and ear out for your names... And warned less experienced hunters to steer clear since some pretty serious dangers tend to follow you guys around."  
  
They all exchanged bemused looks. "Well, he's definitely not wrong about that."  
  
"Indeed... We are a rather inconspicuous lot, given that detail."  
  
"He also told the veteran or higher-tier hunters that keeping an eye on you all or even lending a helping hand might be valuable experience." Aylin continued.  
  
"Hn, I'm guessing since you helped Prompto take out that military base, you're more from _that_ group." Gladio remarked.  
  
"Well, I'm definitely not an amateur, at least. But obviously" she gestured at the wound in her side. "I still have quite a ways to go before I can say I've truly honed my skill."  
  
"Eh, mistakes happen." Aylin noticed Gladio's fingers skimming a scar that cut across his forehead as he brushed back his hair.  
  
"Yes, even to those who are most prepared," Ignis had a rather tight-lipped smile on his face and the grip on his cane tightened.

Another knock signaled Aranea’s appearance. Aylin’s expression went from tense to flustered.

“M-Miss Highwind?!”

The silver-haired woman resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “Just Aranea, kid. Don’t make me sound older than I am.” She gave a small sigh, her tone softening. “One of the guys told me about Levant… Sorry to hear it.”

Aylin was taken aback and she ducked her head a little. “O-oh. I… Thanks.”

There was no indication of further dialogue that would come from the younger girl, so Aranea bit back another sigh and spoke up again. “Your brother would’ve been proud of you, y’know.”

Aylin looked back up at her, eyes shining and cheeks bright red. “You think so?”

“Hell yeah. Kicking Niff ass and helping the Prince’s best friend? He’s probably jealous of you, if anything.”

Aylin gave a small laugh, holding her injured side. “I guess he would be.”

After the group exchanged more pleasantries and Ignis checked Aylin’s wounds again, everyone left for their respective rooms.

Prompto lingered behind a bit, waving Ignis and Gladio off and promising he’d be following them shortly. “So, are you sure you’re okay?”

Aylin had settled back down to rest. Her expression was tired, but her voice was carefully even. “I’m doing better.” She gave him a look. “...You’re not still blaming yourself, are you?”

The blond’s face flushed. “Ah… you got me.”

She rolled her eyes. “I already told you not to worry about it. It was just a stroke of bad luck, nothing new for me.”

Prompto nodded, unconvinced. “A-anyways… It was fun, fighting with you as my ally.”

A tiny smile appeared on Aylin’s face. “Thanks. I… I haven’t really gone on any hunts with people since Lev… But it was pretty nice.”

“I guess you can say we made a good team, right?” Prompto turned to face her and gave her a quick wink and pointed his fingers in what he believed would be a suave manner.

She burst out laughing, grimacing at the sharp stabbing pain in her side but still grinning at Prompto’s corniness nonetheless. “I guess we do.”

“Ahaha… Well, get some shut eye, m’kay?”

“I will, and Prompto?”

“Hm?”

“Thanks for looking out for me.” Aylin gave him a smile.

The blonde found himself blushing in spite of himself and he rubbed the back of his neck. “I… Sure thing. G’night.” 


	11. 'Fowl' Talk

The next day Prompto woke late, his body letting him rest to compensate for the exhaustion of the previous night. As expected, Gladio and Ignis had already gotten up and left, leaving the gunner alone in their shared room. However, Prompto found a potion labeled messily with his name on it on the desk and he found himself smiling as he downed the contents of the vial, sighing as the pain from the still-raw skin on his burned shoulder ebbed away into a faint itch.

“Thanks, guys.” He mumbled, stretching and bouncing on the balls of his feet, his energy restored. 

After washing up and getting dressed, he headed into the diner, greeting Takka and thanking him for letting them turn his restaurant and home into a temporary hospital.

“Eh, s’no trouble. Y’all’ve helped me with ingredients so it’s only fair. Glad to see the lil’ lady up an’ about, though. Had me worried for a while.”

“Aylin?” Prompto asked, surprised. “She’s up?”

“Yep, down by Cid’s place with the others, I reckon. Mentioned sum ‘bout a bird, I think.”

“Got it. Thanks again!” Prompto paused in the doorway to give one last wave before he turned towards Cid’s garage.

True to Takka’s speculations, Aylin and Aranea were chatting by the gas station, flanked by the two chocobos from the haven. Aylin was stroking the wings of the white bird while the green rested its chin on the top of Aylin’s head, making for a rather silly image.

Prompto pulled out his camera on reflex, snapping the picture and catching the attention of the two women. He glanced down at the shot and noticed Aylin had her short hair combed down neatly--a vast difference from the messy (very Noct-like) style it had been the previous day. He mused to himself, wondering how long it would remain neat when there was a chocobo nuzzled on top of it.

“Rise and shine, Shortcake.” Aranea quipped.

“Morning, sleepyhead.” Aylin’s greeting followed immediately after. “Uh, what’s with the camera?”

“Heyaz,” Prompto replied, an easy smile appearing on his face. “I guess I never got to tell you, but I’m a bit of an avid photog.”

“A bit?” Aranea was skeptical and he chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Well, okay, so I grab shots whenever I can. Hope you don’t mind. It’s a cute pic… Uh, with the chocobos and all.”

“Nah, Trebs and Bass are very photogenic, so go right aheadl.”

“Trebs and Bass?”

“Yup, Bass belonged to my brother,” Aylin motioned upwards at the green chocobo, who clicked indignantly at the sudden motion. “And Treble… Well, she’s mine.”

The white bird trilled and padded over to Prompto, leaning down to nudge his hand with her beak.

“Aww, cool names!” The blonde obliged the chocobo, patting the soft neck feathers.

“I’m glad you were able to bring them along,” Aylin looked between Aranea and Prompto. “Bass… he’s a tough bird and Treble’s smart, but there’s not much they can do when they’re spooked by daemons. I was pretty worried.”

Aranea held up her hands. “Don’t thank me, the boys brought them along when they went to pick you up.”

“Well, more like they followed us,” Prompto confessed. “I ended up at your campsite after the battle and they were there. Kinda glad they didn’t attack me once they saw you were hurt…”

“I guess they felt that you were doing your best to help me out.” After a pause, Aylin added, “Thanks again for that, by the way.”

“Awh, it was nothing…”

Aranea watched the exchange with a ghost of a smile on her face until her phone buzzed in her pocket. “Huh.” Glancing at the name on the caller ID, she gestured at the two, heading off towards the empty caravan to get some privacy. “Sorry, gotta take this call.”

“Okay,” The two younger individuals nodded in response, and it wasn’t until she was well out of earshot that Aylin spoke again, her voice quiet with admiration.

“...She’s just so damn cool…”

Prompto blinked. “Who, Aranea?”

Aylin shot him a look back. “Why, do you think she’s  _ not _ cool?” It was almost as if she were daring him to say otherwise.

“What? No! She’s  _ totally  _ cool. I just didn’t think you would… y’know, say anything about it.”

“O-oh, that’s…” Aylin’s face flushed.

Treble squawked, startling Prompto. He had gotten distracted by their conversation and had stopped stroking the chocobo’s feathers. Apparently she wanted more attention.

He rolled his eyes good-naturedly before indulging the bird. “That reminds me… I have to go back and pick up my--”

Prompto’s sentence was cut off by the buzzing of his own phone. “W-who… Oh,” He answered with one hand, making sure Treble was still receiving an acceptable amount of attention so he wouldn’t get yelled at again. “What’s up, Iggy?”

“Good morning,” The greeting was relaxed. “Hope I didn’t wake you.”

“Nah, I got up a little while ago. Where’d you and Gladio go?”

“Reconnaissance on the base you infiltrated yesterday. According to Gladio, you did a spectacular job in tearing the garrison to pieces.”

Prompto grinned at Aylin, signaling it was okay for her to eavesdrop as he put the phone on speaker. “That we did.”

Gladio’s voice pitched in, amused. “Damn place is a wreck. The hell’d you two do in there?”

“Heh, told you I could handle it.” The blonde couldn’t help but be a little smug.

“We never doubted you, Prompto.” Ignis replied back immediately.

“Yeah, we knew you’d be fine. But  _ shit _ , all that was pretty impressive.” Gladio agreed.

Aylin was also happy with the praise. “Glad to help.” 

“Ah, but that was not the reason I called,” Ignis addressed Prompto once more. “Rather, did you happen to make a campsite to the east of the base?”

“Wow, good timing, dude,” Prompto whistled. “I was just saying I needed to go back there to pick up Lucky.”

“As I suspected. Well, we shall bring him back with us along with your rucksack.”

The blonde hummed appreciatively. “Aww, what a pal. Thanks, guys.”

“But of course.”

Prompto hung up, still overjoyed at the positive evaluation he had received from his esteemed companions. Aylin was nodding slowly.

“Lucky’s the name of your chocobo, then?”

“Ahaha, yeah. It’s kinda silly, but I liked it.”

“I don’t think it’s silly.” Aylin’s tone changed abruptly, reminding the gunner of how Ignis often sounded when reciting facts or giving lectures. “A good name for a chocobo has to be simple, cute, and easy for the steed to remember and respond to. ‘Lucky’ fits all that perfectly.”

“Wow, you really know your stuff.”

“I… I’ve read up a lot on chocobos and chocobo breeding.”

“You could probably give Wiz a run for his money.” Prompto joked.

Aylin laughed lightly. “Nah, he’s the one who lent me the books in the first place.”

“Aren’t you two getting real cozy?”

Aranea had returned and Prompto felt his face heat up. “W-wh…”

However, Aylin nudged Prompto in the side. “Well, it’s not like we saved each other’s asses multiple times yesterday. Normally that tends to make people close  _ real _ quick.”

“Heh, got that right.”

“Anyways… is something up?”

Aranea raised her eyebrows. “Yeah, actually. Just got a request for aid at Galdin Quay.”

The two younger adults exchanged looks.

“You mean, the resort?”

“Why, what’s wrong?”

The dragoon folded her arms. “Apparently a bunch of refugees from Altissia and Tenebrae arrived by boat. Even though the entire place has turned into a shelter, they’re still short on space and there’s a lot of overflow.” She sighed. “To make things worse, the daemons are acting more aggressive and getting tougher for the hunters to deal with. I’ve been asked to clear some of the hordes on the main roads and airlift some of the refugees out to Lestallum.”

“Sounds like a big job.” Prompto frowned.

“It is,” Aranea confirmed. “And as luck would have it, I’m already short on men as it is--Biggs and Wedge are both leading groups on their own… Everything’s getting out of hand.”

Aylin shrugged her shoulders, wincing as the motion shifted the bandages hidden under her clothes. “Well, you’ve got us here.”

Prompto grinned. “Yeah, I’m sure Iggy and Gladio would wanna help out, too. After all, we owe you for everything you’ve done.”

“Hell yeah you do.” Aranea chuckled. “...Well, I guess I have no choice. All right, I’ll bring you boys along.” She gave Aylin a look, gesturing at the fresh wounds they all knew were still healing. “Are  _ you _ going to be okay though?”

Aylin bit her lip. She really should have expected the question, but it caught her off-guard nonetheless. The strict dragoon would see right through anything less than absolute certainty and yet... “I want to go with you. I should be almost completely healed by tomorrow with the elixirs Ignis gave me, but even if I’m not… I could help organize people or help with some crowd control. Just easy stuff while you all handle the daemons, y’know?”

Aranea gave the younger woman a careful once-over. She glanced between Aylin and Prompto--noticing with an amused smirk that the latter looked as anxious as Aylin for her verdict. “Damn. Maybe I’m getting too soft.” She folded her arms. “Fine.”

Both Aylin and Prompto’s expressions lit up. It took a moment but when Aranea shot the gunner a weird look he frowned, probably confused at himself. Why was he so happy about this, again?

“Thank you, Mis--Aah, Aranea! I won’t slow you down, I swear. You can leave me behind if I end up being too much of a deadweight, or maybe drop me off in Lestallum so I can help the refugees there...” Aylin was babbling, her hands fidgeting nervously as she expressed her gratitude towards the dragoon.

“Okay, okay, calm down before you reopen those wounds of yours.” Aranea laughed. “Go get some rest, kid. You’ll need it for tomorrow.”

“I will! Thanks again!” Aylin nodded, obediently turning on her heel and leading the pair of chocobo away. “See you later Aranea, Prompto!”

“O-oh, right. Laterz!” Prompto shot back, stunned at how quickly Aylin was to follow Aranea’s orders. He watched her leave before jumping as something nudged him in hard the rear. “What?!”

Aranea lowered her foot and Prompto grimaced. Did she have to kick him with such hard, pointed boots?

“That’s one more you owe me, y’know.”

He stuck out his lower lip, not understanding. “Huh? F-for what?”

She gave him an incredulous look. “Are you joking?”

“I…” He thought her words over seriously. “...Uhm… No?”

The dragoon rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Well, I guess there’s no helping you there. Figure it out, Shortcake. I’m not gonna spell it out for you.”

She raised a hand in farewell, heading back to her airship and leaving the bewildered gunner to ponder her words on his own.


	12. Calls and Kwehs

It hadn’t taken much to convince Gladio and Ignis to help Aranea with her job in Galdin Quay--after all, they had received aid from her at Fort Vaullerey and were perfectly fine with returning the favor.

The next day, Aranea had the airship prepped and ready to go early in the morning. According to the call she received, there wasn't any immediate danger that needed to be dealt with--the daemons, while increasing in number and ferocity, were still pretty far from civilization. 

“Are you sure you will be all right?” Ignis hadn’t seem convinced the Aylin was well enough to go.

“I’m good. I won’t get myself into trouble, I swear.” She reassured him.

“That may be true, however trouble often finds its way around quite easily as of late,” The strategist reasoned, a deep frown on his face. Aylin couldn’t be sure, but she had the nagging feeling the advisor was somehow scrutinizing her reaction behind his darkened spectacles. “Perhaps it would be wiser for you to proceed to Lestallum and aid us when we arrive there.” 

“I dunno if I'd be much safer in a car or truck on these roads,” Aylin folded her arms, a little peeved. “Y’know, I can handle myself but if you really don't want me around, you can just say so.”

Prompto, Gladio, and even Aranea turned to the strategist, silently awaiting his response to such a candid remark.

Ignis had raised his eyebrows in surprise, his mouth open slightly. Apparently he was unnerved as they were. “That… was not at all my intention and I believe there was a misunderstanding. I was merely concerned for your safety and I apologize if my words were offensive.”

Aylin glanced around at the others and noticed the odd mix of amusement and shock on their expressions. She frowned, her eyes narrowing as she stared at the floor, almost as if she were replaying the last few moments in her mind.

Ignis--aware of the suddenly awkward atmosphere despite not having vision of the hilarious mix of emotions displayed around him--continued after clearing his throat. “If you truly feel you are well enough to join us then I have no qualms about the matter. However, should you have any doubt, please consider bowing out… at least until you are well again.”

“O-oh,” Aylin's face reddened as she realized how snippy her words had sounded in the face of his earnest formality. “Er, thanks. I appreciate your concern. Sorry, I sounded… Uh, I just… yeah.”

Ignis’ lapse of stoicism had ended and the corners of his lips turned up slightly. “Quite all right.”

Aranea shook her head at the group before turning on her heel. “Well, I’m heading to get food before we leave. Ship takes off in two hours so be there or it’ll leave without you.”

“Okay.”

“Gotcha.”

“Yup.”

Ignis dipped his head and followed after the dragoon, signaling to the others to come with if they wanted to eat as well.

Once Ignis had left earshot, Aylin approached Prompto and Gladio with a deadpan look on her face. “Uh, is he always so… worried? Like…  _ All _ the time?”

“Yeah, worrying is his thing.” Gladio chuckled. “You guys coming or what?”

“Hm, in a bit. Gotta send off Treble and Bass.”

“Yeah, same.” Prompto waved, following Aylin to the makeshift pens they had created for the birds.

“...I hope Ignis isn’t mad at me.” Aylin muttered, a sheepish look on her face.

“Nah. Iggy worries like a mama chocobo, but you get used to it after a while. One of the perks of having a royal advisor around, I guess.” Prompto stretched his arms over his head, yelping as his bird took advantage of his vulnerability by pecking at his jacket. “Aww, c’mon, buddy. Don’t pull anymore studs out, I don’t have glue to put them back on.”

Aylin snorted, busy with her own two birds. “Don’t give Wiz a hard time, all right?” Treble and Bass regarded her with blinking eyes, much quieter than their pale blue counterpart. “And keep watch over Lucky, too--don’t exclude him.”

Prompto’s bird perked up at the sound of its name, giving a squawk and finally letting the blonde readjust his vest. “Ah, I just hope he doesn’t cause too much trouble for them...”

“Nah, they’ll be fine.” Aylin refocused her attention on the chocobos. Bass had stepped forward and dipped his head towards her and after stroking his feathers soothingly she leaned in, pressing her forehead against the bird’s beak. Both had their eyes closed and looked almost as if they were praying.

Prompto watched with fascination as Aylin turned to Treble and repeated the ritual, the white bird pressing her forehead against Aylin’s gently. The bird whistled, sounding a little sad to be leaving the young woman. Prompto’s fingers twitched--he felt the urge to capture the endearing moment on camera, but he also didn’t want to disturb the two. His moment of hesitation cost him the shot--by the time he had reached for his pocket they had both stepped back.

She scratched the back of her head, spotting Prompto staring at her with wide eyes. “Sorry about that. Uh, is Lucky ready to go?”

“O-oh,” The gunner jolted and whipped around back towards his own steed, his ears burning. Lucky had also watched the interaction and cocked his head cutely to one side. As Prompto reached out to readjust the saddle on his back, Lucky misinterpreted the motion and shoved its face forward in an attempt to mimic the other two birds.

The chocobo only succeeded in ramming its head into Prompto’s, sending the blonde sprawling backwards into the dirt with a shout. Lucky straightened back up immediately, flapping its short wings and squawking loudly in confusion.

“L-Lucky!!” Prompto scrambled back to his feet, a whine in his voice.

Aylin burst out laughing, covering her mouth and trying to disguise the fact that she had just snorted at the gunner. “Holy shit, are you okay?!”

Prompto’s lips were pressed together and his face was bright red. “Y-yeah, I just…”

Aylin was holding her side as she continued cackling at him, beyond amused. The blonde couldn’t help but smile at the mirth. “Gods, was it really that funny?”

“I-I’m sorry, but the look on your face, ahaha!” Aylin tried collecting herself, taking a deep breath and holding it.

Prompto found himself laughing too as the young woman tried and failed to contain her giggles. “Man, kinda wish I could have recorded that.”

“Ah, my stomach hurts from all the laughing, wow.” After a few more moments, Aylin was finally able to settle down, a cheerful grin still on her face. “Well, we should send the birds off and get something to eat. I’m hungry.”

“M’kay, sounds good.” Prompto approached Lucky a bit more cautiously, checking that the reins were secure one last time before giving the blue bird a hug. “Later, buddy.”

It didn’t take long for the three birds to trot off into the distance, but Prompto and Aylin waited until they had disappeared into the darkness before heading towards the diner.

“So, how’d you get your birds so well trained, Aylin?”

She shrugged. “I’ve known them since they were chicks. Since Lucky hasn’t spent as much time with you there’s still a bit of disconnect, but that’ll go away with time.”

Prompto tipped his head to one side. “Since they were chicks?”

“Yeah, Levant and I visited Wiz’s Chocobo Post for the first time during the spring, when the babies were hatching.”

“Aww, so Wiz let you pick out baby birds?” The blonde couldn’t help but be a little envious--the chicks were just so cute and fluffy!

“Actually no,” Aylin scratched the back of her head, a little embarrassed. “Wiz normally keeps the chicks in with their mothers after they hatch. Levant and I… We broke the rules.”

Prompto’s eyebrows raised in surprise. “Oh?”

“Yeah, we snuck into the stable area where all the mothers and eggs were.” She laughed at the memory. “Gods, we caused so much trouble… Anyways, we walked in right when these two were hatching and after they had imprinted on their mother they turned and spotted us. The rest is history.”

“Wow.”

“Wiz was  _ so _ mad,” Aylin shook her head. “He knew we had gotten in when Treble and Bass decided to follow us out of their pen and all around the Post. But those kinds of bonds can’t really be broken so his hand was forced… We did favors like cleaning up the stables to make up for it, but the birds were ours.”

Prompto laughed. “I can’t believe it. I didn’t think you were such a troublemaker, Aylin.”

She shrugged again. “I mean, we were still young. Levant and I didn’t really get many opportunities to mess around when we were kids, so we got a little crazy once we got some freedom.”

“Oooh.” Prompto wasn’t entirely sure how to respond to her sad words “So...you and your brother didn’t really get to go out much?”

Aylin nodded, shuffling her feet. “Yup. We had… a strict household. My dad… he left for good when we were old enough to take care of ourselves.” There was something familiar behind her eyes, something Prompto recognized in his own expression.

She wasn’t telling the whole truth.

“I’m sorry,” He pursed his lips in sympathy. He couldn’t bring himself to feel any animosity over the realization--it would be hypocritical of him after he had done the same his entire life. Despite whatever secrets she might have been harboring, he trusted her.

Aylin hadn’t noticed his brief internal debate, continuing with her story. “Levant started working part-time once he got into high school to help with bills and stuff… He didn’t have much time to hang out with friends or be a normal teen, but he tried making sure I could have some of that freedom.”

“Sounds pretty rough…”

“It probably was. Lev never really talked about it, though. And I… I did what I could to support him, even when he insisted that I should ‘go on and enjoy being a kid.’” Aylin’s steps faltered and the two of them came to a halt outside the diner.

“You two were so close.”

“Mhm. I was sick a lot when we were little and Levant was the one who took care of me.” She cracked another grin. “He was almost like Ignis, with the way he’d nag and fuss. What about you?”

Prompto blinked. “M-me?”

“Yeah, I feel like I’ve blabbed on about my brother so much, but what about your family?”

“Ah, well…” The gunner looked down at the ground. He shuffled his feet, his throat suddenly dry and his hands sweaty as he tried to speak.

Aylin noticed how the conversation had taken a sudden turn and backpedaled, unsure of how to deal with the situation. “Er, actually, why don’t we go eat first? I mean, if you don’t wanna talk about it that’s totally fine.”

“I…” He took a moment to deliberate before nodded, a little defeated. In the back of his mind he could feel the self-doubt creeping up on him again. ‘ _ I guess I’m still too scared _ .’

“C’mon, let’s go get some food.”

“...Yeah. Sorry, I… I don’t really feel like talking about it right now.” Prompto offered an apologetic smile, but it looked more like a grimace.

“Eh, don’t worry about it.” She waved a dismissive hand, an uneasy look on her face. Prompto couldn’t be certain, but it looked like Aylin was uncomfortable in difficult social situations.

It was a problem he knew all too well, having grown up with the same issues. Thankfully he was able to handle it better and changed the subject relatively smoothly as he ushered her into the diner. “So... what do you normally eat at Takka’s? I’m a huge fan of the spicy beans.” 

The look of relief on her face was apparent and Prompto couldn’t help but be a little proud of himself. “Spicy beans? N-nah, I can’t handle too much spice.”

“Oooh, weak with spicy foods?”

Aylin flushed, but returned the jibe playfully. “Weak?! Says the person who got bowled over by their chocobo!”

“T-that was an accident and you know it!” He folded his arms, pouting.

“Suuure, wait until I tell Aranea and the others and we’ll see what they think.” She tipped her head towards the bar, where the others had turned to watch their bickering with varying degrees of amusements.

“What?! No way!” He gave a dramatic gasp. “You wouldn’t dare…”

“Hey guys, guess what just happened to Prompto outside?”

“Aylinnnnnnn!!”


End file.
